To Bridge the Gap

[Sana Aravell]

Summer, 111 FA
Early Evening
Yellow Ajah Quarters, White Tower, Tar Valon

Sana stared absently out the window, barely noticing or smelling the scent of life in her garden. The pestle in her hand worked almost without thought as she ground the herbs within to powder. Even on the worst of days when Rahlin had laid siege to the White Tower, mortar and pestle had always worked wonders on her mood, soothing her anxieties and her fears. But today, Sana found herself unable to even concentrate on the task at hand, and she had already shattered two mortars for it.

Not that anyone could tell, for she had quickly swept the pieces away into the trash, for one of the novices to clear later.

It wasn’t so much that Sana was worried, but for the first time as a Sitter she found herself torn between the will of the Ajah Head, and that of the Amyrlin and her own heart. The Sitting had had to be adjourned after several hours of furious debate upon the motion that the Mother had laid before the Hall of the Tower. Of course, the Red Ajah had entirely succumbed to convulsions of collective fury, which it always did when the Black Tower was concerned. But the fact that her fellow Yellow Sitters were split on this matter … the Yellow was supposed to heal, not divide. If there was one thing that Sana had always advocated for during her time as a Sitter, it was compassion, forgiveness. The Aes Sedai were supposed to set an example to the rest of the world, a bulwark against the growing strength of the Shadow. If they ran around screaming merely at the sight of men ... what sort of strength did that display?

Neserin of the Red in particular had devolved into a screaming match with a Green Sitter on the floor almost immediately before the Mother had laid her proposal out. A spectacular breakdown in the alliance between two Ajahs that had almost naturally supported each other after Tarmon Gai’don, and the closest thing to a riot that Sana had seen within the White Tower itself. Even after she had caught herself gaping like a slackfish and returned to her usual composure, the two Sitters had still been going at it, all dignity be damned.

Only when Katreine’s voice, echoing like thunder, ripped through the Hall of the Tower, were the arguing Sitters shocked into a deafening and embarrassed silence. The only saving grace was that the entire Hall had been warded, so none of the Sisters present could hear what the Hall was arguing about. But there had still been a good pause in the debate for a good few candlemarks before enough dignity had been restored for the proceedings to continue. And of course, since no vote had been called due to the chaos, the entire matter had been Sealed to the Hall of the Tower.

Still, there had been enough talk that Sana knew where her own Sisters stood in the matter. One for, and one against, though eventually the Yellow would likely stand in unanimous support of the first Amyrlin raised from their Ajah in nearly four centuries. But there were other ways to show displeasure, such as being seated during the first call for consensus.

So it all came down to Sana. Again.

[Calina Taborwin]

Calina had not been a Sitter for very long. She had a finely tuned sense of Daes Dae'mar, but it was played nowhere as fiercely or skillfully as in Tar Valon, not even in her native Cairhien. Of course, there was usually a pleasant, agreeable facade over that ferocity. Aes Sedai did not yell, or scream, or nearly fight one another. Their dignity and serenity were beyond reproach.

That mask of civility had nearly fallen away entirely today.

Calina had known that the proposal would encounter...strong dissent, at best, especially from certain areas like the Red Ajah. There was no secret that some Aes Sedai would never forgive the Black Tower for Rahlin's war, even though there had been Asha'man fighting on both sides of that bloody conflict. Aes Sedai memories were long, as were there lives. There were still many Sisters in the Tower who had lost someone. There would be no forgiveness there.

Still, she'd underestimated the divisions present in the White Tower. She had not expected a consensus immediately, but certainly more support than there'd been. She still had the numbers for the lesser consensus, but that wasn't enough. The White Tower must be unified. The greater consensus was impossible without somehow calling a Sitting without the Red present, which wouldn't help matters. Katreine, and Calina by extension, needed broad-based support from the other Ajahs to make up for their recalcitrance. And one area that unexpectedly needed shoring up was the Yellow, of all places. Calina had hoped that the loyalty due to an Amyrlin of one's own Ajah would bring their Sitters in line but that remained in question.

That was why Calina found herself running about the White Tower in the early summer evening, headed for the Yellow Ajah quarters. The gray and white silk Taraboner gown and veil were not meant for running, but Calina made it work anyway. She had multiple appointments to make before the Hall Sat once more on the issue, and she intended to meet with each and every Sitter personally, if necessary.

The Yellow Sitters were divided, and Calina thought she knew which to sway. Sana Aravell was a reasonable woman, one possessed of both vision for the future and respect for the past. Her voice would convince the other Sitters; Calina only needed her to see the value in Katreine's vision. She wished more people were willing to look past their own shortsighted traditions; Katreine din Ziago might be the most influential Amyrlin in an Age, if only people would listen.

Calina found her way to Sana's room and took a breath to settle herself. Strength and confidence were necessary, not frantic energy. She put on her mask, a bland smile spreading across her face, and then knocked thrice at the door.

"Sana Sedai? I hope I'm not interrupting, but I need a few moments of your time."

[Sana Aravell]

On hindsight, Sana reflected as she stared down at the other woman, she shouldn’t have been surprised that Calina Taborwin had decided to seek her out over the other Yellow Sitters. Even though she was perhaps the newest among the Yellow Sitters and perhaps the least likely among them to be prone to politics, no one would have been elected to be a Sitter if they did not have a keen sense of Tower politics. She knew that she had been elected to appease the “progressive” sisters among the Tower, and as a moderate among the Yellows she had on occasion sided with the “traditionalists”, much to the consternation of some of her peers. But much as Sana appreciated change, she also understood the value of stability in the face of the growing Shadow.

Sometimes, it was better to be a bulwark than a tsunami.

The way that Katriene had pushed forward on her plans to restore relations with the Black Tower was something Sana believed in and supported, but the way that the Mother had gone about proposing it to the Hall hadn’t necessarily been the best, and the traditionalists among the Yellow weren’t happy about that. Oh, some might have been truly angered by the suggestion that they renew their alliance with the Black Tower after Rahlin had betrayed them all so, but the majority of the senior sisters, from the Head of the Ajah to the Traditionalist Sitter, were simply miffed that the Amyrlin hadn’t given them warning before springing the surprised upon the Hall, and were dragging their feet to show their disapproval of the way the entire matter had been handled, and Sana couldn’t exactly argue against that. There had been no coalition gathering among potential Sitters who might have supported her decision, no heads-up given to her former Ajah at the potential storm that was brewing that could pit the Yellow against the other Ajahs (no matter that an Amyrlin officially had to shed her old Ajah, everyone remembered the Ajah an Amyrlin came from and whatever they did would reflect on the Ajah).

It wasn’t as if the Amyrlin was in any way obligated to alert the Ajahs, even her former one, on each and every potential issue she wanted to call before the Hall, but as Katriene was raised from the Yellow, the First Weaver was not at all pleased to have been caught so unawares on such a contentious issue flat-footed. And the fact was that it had been Calina from the Grey, and not any Sitter from the Yellow, who had been called upon by Katriene. Given Sana’s own connections to the rest of the White Tower, and the Black Tower – her own brother was a Captain! – Sana would be lying if she said that she wasn’t annoyed at least a little bit that she had been overlooked by someone who had only just entered the Hall. Katriene clearly had made her own decision as to who her greatest supporters would be in the Hall, and it obviously it did not include her own Ajah.

Nonetheless, Sana put her annoyance aside and summoned up a small smile on her face for the other Sitter. “Of course, Sister. I am completely at your disposal.” Not that she could say anything otherwise – Calina’s strength in the Power far outstripped hers, and if they had not both been Sitters therefore it being undignified for Sana to do so, Sana would have had to obey Calina’s every whim, her own seniority in the Hall and her own political connections relevant to the situation notwithstanding.

Allowing Calina to sweep gracefully into the room, Sana nonetheless bowed slightly to normal decorum and made tea while Calina adjusted herself and took stock of her surroundings. The tea she made was strong and black, and she poured two full cups, one for each of them, and sighed gratefully as she sipped at the tea before finally allowing the conversation to continue. And when she spoke, Sana was unusually direct, at odds with the normal demure persona she exhibited in the Hall.

“It would have been nice for the Yellow to know what the Amyrlin had been planning before she broached the subject in the Hall, don’t you think, Calina?”

[Calina Taborwin]

Calina swept into Sana's chambers all stately grace, with none of her earlier harried energy present. Calina nodded pleasantly to Sana as she moved in, hands folded in front of her and a vague expression on her face. Sana was smart enough to know why Calina was here, of course, and though Calina had a dozen more things to do this evening the proper forms had to be observed. Calina could be patient when required and was even quite good at it, but tonight was not a wonderful night for patient plotting. She had to restrain the urge to pace nervously, instead appearing to note appreciatively Sana's carefully arranged sitting room. She caught the details of the room of course, but in reality she was trying to compile what she knew of the older Yellow before it was time to get to business. Sana busied herself fixing tea, and Calina took the cup with a nod and that empty smile she always wore when working.

It would have been nice for the Yellow to know what the Amyrlin had been planning before she broached the subject in the Hall, don't you think, Calina?

Calina sipped at the tea, expression bland. That was as close to a rebuke as any Sister short of the Amyrlin herself would dare give Calina Taborwin. Not that she hadn't received actual rebukes from Aes Sedai before, but those had been before Calina herself was raised and by the happenstance of her strength in the Power assumed a space in the hierarchy of Aes Sedai reserved for her by strength alone. ...Or it had come at the hands of Katreine din Ziago, which Calina was forced to admit was fair. She sipped her tea and lowered the cup, resisting the urge to toy with the silver plate necklace around her throat.

"Perhaps if the Yellow Ajah was more consistently aligned with her goals in the Hall, the Amyrlin Seat would see fit to share all sorts of things."

Calina said it deadpan, with a moderate tone that was meant to avoid even the suggestion of anger. There was no sense in setting Sana's back to the wall; despite her pleasant demeanor, no one became a Sitter without iron for a spine, and the sunny older woman had shown it in this conversation already. Besides, if Calina had been in Sana's shoes she would have wanted advance warning as well. They'd avoided broaching the subject to force the issue, rather than allow time to establish counterarguments, or for word to spread through other Aes Sedai who might share a certain ideological bent, but that didn't mean the Yellow Sitters would like it. She continued on to fill the silence, gesturing at herself coyly with one hand.

"That said, in my experience the value of an idea should trump however onerous one might find its source, wouldn't you agree Sana? And in this case, well...bringing the Towers together in harmony is a goal I think you find worthy of supporting, and one the Yellow as a whole should easily be able to support."

[Sana Aravell]

Sana nodded slowly in agreement, but though her face was mild, it gave away nothing particularly useful. “It is true that the value of an idea in a rational and logical world, would be taken and accepted regardless of its source, because then the arguments that occurred in such a world would be based only on logic and contrasting ideas.” Pausing for a bit, she poured some more tea and sipped before continuing. “But we do not live in such a world. Instead, in our world, politics also dominates, and therefore in our world the source of an idea is just as important as the idea itself. It is what we have been consigned to, and we must therefore play our allotted cards as we have them on the table. Therefore, even as your goal of bringing the ancient symbol together, as it was in the days after the Last Battle, is admirable, the positioning of you as the sole source of this position besides the Mother herself, cannot be ignored.”

She paused for a bit, gathering her thoughts. “You are correct, Sister, in that the majority of the Yellow, both progressive and traditional, sees that value in your proposal. In our Ajah, both schools of thought have been given voices in the Hall, and I am certain that you know on which side my fellow Sitters are on, and will take on this matter with you as the source.” Meaning, Sana thought, that as things stood the progressive Sitter would stand for the Amyrlin, while the conservative Sitter would not. “The deciding vote, and the only chance you and the Mother have, at obtaining unified support from the Yellow, has therefore been left up to me, the one who bridges the gap between the two sides.” Sana smiled crookedly. “This is not a position that I can therefore take lightly, you must understand, because what I decide to do next not only has ramifications for our Ajah, but the fallout can possibly extend to both Towers, given how fast news may travel. My brother was recently raised as Captain of the Earth Legion.”

Sana stood up and walked over to the fireplace, where she removed small portrait of both Terron and herself when they were young, and put it on the table for Calina to see. Her own brother, dark as Seafolk and a storm in his eyes, a wild contrast to the meek sister standing next to her in his protective shadow. “From an ideological perspective, Calina, I think you know where I stand. But as a Sitter I must look at things beyond that. I must look at the Yellow before myself, and I must also look at our relations to the Mother, now, it seems.”

She stared at Calina, judging and sizing her up to see if she was willing to hear what Sana had to say next, before shaking her head and plowing on anyway. “The Mother can indeed have the full support of the Yellow Ajah, but she must give us time, she must give me time, to rally that support. And the only way that I can do that is by letting you know that the driving force behind this proposal cannot solely be a lone Sitter from the Gray Ajah. The Yellow must also be shown to have a stake in this, and a hand in it.”

[Calina Taborwin]

Sana was calm and logical, embodying Aes Sedai serenity in her arguments. Calina sat and listened, occasionally sipping tea while remaining inscrutable. It did take an effort of will to not visibly bristle at the implication that Calina did not understand politics. That bothered her even more than the implication that the problem with the proposal was Calina herself—she was Cairhienin, born and bred to political intrigue!

This was not the Sana Aravell that Calina knew. Oh, she knew of her fellow Sitter; the Aravells were apparently well connected between the Towers and Saldaea, though Calina hadn’t known that her brother was apparently a Captain now. But Sana’s reputation and behavior in the Hall thus far painted her as demure and reticent, and Calina’s own observations considered her an important piece of balancing the Hall but not particularly decisive in her own right. Instead, Sana was direct and to the point in a way that few Aes Sedai risked. It was refreshing, honestly.

Calina set down the teacup, the tea was stronger than she liked anyway, and crossed her legs as Sana continued. Calina maintained her bland smile, but she did not enjoy what she was hearing. Not one bit. Yes, Calina was known as the Amyrlin’s voice in the Hall, and yes, Calina’s age and past indiscretions had made forging connections delicate work. But to be identified as the weak point in this utterly necessary work was galling.

Sana’s proposal was a relief, but it did not soothe Calina’s damaged ego. She was not used to being described as a problem in such explicit terms and it raised serious questions about the state of Calina’s reputation. The hierarchy of power was strict, but apparently not nearly enough to outweigh being a nearly-stilled Novice who’d made her way to upstart Sitter. Still, Calina had always been willing to sacrifice her order to advance the goals of people she believed in.

“Sana.”

Calina began slowly, softly. There was an opening here, and a chance at securing valuable support in both Towers, if everyone played their cards right. Calina moved carefully into her response, allowing just a hint of tightness in her voice. If Sana thought that Calina was distressed in any way (which she was certainly not!) so much the better.

“I see your point. Perhaps I’ve...overstepped, slightly.”

She faked a faint grimace before moving on.

“I cannot do this alone, so help me. Step up and place your name and your face to the proposal once the Yellow has agreed. Make the Yellow a central factor in the proposal if you want. Light, take all the credit, should that please you. You know this is the right thing to do, so help me change this from my proposal, or Mother’s proposal, into the will of the Tower.”

Personal investment was the best way to make an ally. Sana wanted in, and perhaps joining might turn her from a swing vote in the Hall to a reliable source of support. Then Calina sighed, shaking her head.

“Time is the issue. Certain groups in the Hall will never support this, as you well know. And while I’m attempting to sway support, I’m certain they are as well, and they cannot be allowed time to work. We need the Yellow, soon.”